Bitter
by Demitria Miriam
Summary: That this had happened because of his lack of control didn't faze him in the least. No, instead it was the taste of utter fear on his tongue that made his predicament all the more bitter. That the other male was involved made it all the more sour a defeat. Angst, Suspense, Romance, AU. SessxMiro.
1. Bitter

Title: Bitter  
Author: Demitria Miriam  
Pairing: Sess x Miro  
Rating: M  
Disclaimer: I don't own.

Summary: That this had happened because of his lack of control didn't faze him in the least. No, instead it was the taste of utter fear on his tongue that made his predicament all the more bitter. That the other male was involved made it all the more sour. Angst, Suspense, Romance, AU.

* * *

**Bitter**

Eyes wide in utter disbelief as he stared down at a now clawless hand, Sesshoumaru finally lost control of all the hard-won decorum he'd amassed throughout his prestigious life as a daiyoukai, heart pounding so loud and so hard beneath his ribcage he could feel it beating heavily against his chest, as if it'd burst through all layers of bone, muscle and skin.

His eyes rolled slowly to the dark tresses spilling down his chest to either side of his shoulders as if the deliberate delay in seeing them would somehow make the reality less so.

Midnight black hair...

Sesshoumaru suddenly felt lightheaded.

And that feeling coursing through him was the last straw.

Sesshoumaru fell to his knees, a sharp crack echoing throughout the barren terrain as pain shot piercingly through his limbs. Blurry-eyed and beyond furious all the once proud youkai could do was stare at his shaking hand in front of him.

_Human..._

He was... _human_.

The winter sky was as unforgiving as the one who did this to him as the white sky blew its icy touch across his now sensitive skin, chilling him further to the bone.

_**Human...**_was his last curse before the weakness of his new body caught up with and engulfed him.

* * *

_To be continued...  
_

Author's Note: Very important about this story: each chapter will be of varying lengths. These are written sort of as a series of flashbacks. See if you can piece this puzzle of a story together as it goes and figure out which ones fall into what order before the end. Originally wrote this first chapter/intro as a prompt from Kaytla. She said to write a drabble based on a human Sesshoumaru fanart by Alex Zoe.


	2. Bitter: Embrace

Chapter Summary: He'd happily forgo his life if it meant he could just hold onto the other man a little bit longer, especially when the other was so intent to deny everything they'd ever engaged in. Even though the other was the whole reason he was cursed and stuck where he was now.

* * *

**Bitter: Embrace**

The daiyoukai gazed at his reflection in the mirror lazily, as if entranced by his own reflection, but his eyes sought that which none other than himself could see and therefore was unconcerned of the staff roaming around the palace this way and that.

_"Careful, if you stand there looking at yourself for too long people might catch on to the fact that you're a closet narcissist, and then where will you be?"_came another male's playful voice, the owner coming to stand next to the demon's reflection within the mirror…

Sesshoumaru's eyes strayed just briefly to look to his side as if to clarify what his eyes were seeing.

Indeed, there was no one there.

The demon sighed and looked back into the mirror, and studying at the occupant now gracing his mirror-self before a perturbed frown pulled further down his face.

_"Now don't do that; pouting really doesn't suit you, Sesshoumaru-sama,"_the other reflection chided, running an exasperated hand through his dark hair.

Sesshoumaru closed his eyes as if in irritation. However, in reality, the daiyouaki could barely contain the feelings welling up within his being, threatening to override his pride and sanity.

_"Sesshoumaru-sama,"_the voice said, softer and far tenderer now.

Gold eyes cracked open slowly, meeting violet eyes filled with mirth.

_"I'm very happy that you're still trying so hard to free me. I am. But maybe, this is what needs to happen." _

"Ridiculous," the daiyoukai said beneath his breath, eyes narrowing at the dark-haired man within the mirror.

_"I think we both need to face the facts that I'm in here, stuck as it were, and no one but you so far has been able to see me. Nor do we know how I got in here in the first place,"_the man said. It was a lie of course. The dark-haired man knew why he was here, and he had a pretty good inkling that the demon did as well, but neither were willing to voice that truth for their own selfish reasons. One silent due to pride and another due to love.

_"Besides, this isn't so bad."_As the other man spoke, he turned to demon's mirror-self and stroked his hair, softly pulling a stray piece back behind the youkai's pointed ear.

Sesshoumaru shuddered. He could feel that touch when in front of this mirror. It felt real, as if the the man was standing right next to him, doing it.

"Houshi, you will refrain from acting like you have rights to touch this Sesshoumaru like that. Cease your behavior," Sesshoumaru said stiffly, ignoring the pleasant feelings it otherwise caused him.

_"Hai, hai,"_ Miroku sighed, laughing it off before he took a step behind the mirror-Sesshoumaru and boldly embraced the slightly taller male in front of him, pulling the demon against his chest. _"But to be honest... I truly... have no reason nor want to escape such an imprisonment."_

Sesshoumaru sucked in a harsh breath and went absolutely still so as to not make a scene in front of the cleaning maids around the room.

"Why," the demon demanded an answer.

_"Even though this place is exceedingly lonely, I don't want to leave because it's the one place where I can freely hold you like this when others are around, without you pushing me away to protect your pride… or whatever it is you're protecting._

"This has given us something of a gift, not just a curse, Sesshoumaru,"

the houshi finally admitted.

There it was. The cold hard truth.

Sesshoumaru could accept that and deal with it from this point on like the mature daiyoukai that he was, or he could-

"I have a sorceress on her way. She will be able to extract you from this contraption, and you'll be whole again. At which point it would then be wise to return to your companions; I'm sure the hanyou is eager to find you safe and sound," Sesshoumaru said flippantly, yet still not moving from the position Mirror-Houshi had his reflection in.

_"Sesshoumaru…"_

"I don't want to hear your excuses. This will end one way or another tonight." And with that the demon walked out of the room, away from eyesight of the mirror.

His long strides slowed only when he knew he was too far away to be seen or heard by anyone and sank to his knees in his private room and stared sightlessly into the darkness.

"Houshi… what have you done to me."

* * *

_To be continued...  
_


	3. Bitter: Answers

Chapter Summary: Answers he sought came to him at a heavy price he had no choice in paying. Important words were spoken but dismissed. And then there was nothing but the biting cold of reality when he'd wake.

* * *

**Bitter: Answers**

The daiyoukai stood motionless atop a cliff overhanging the great water. The weather around him seemed to mirror the frigidness of his mood. With the season of winter upon him glacial winds swept against him bitterly while flecks of ice rain shot down from the overcast sky, biting angrily into his pale skin.

But he felt none of nature's fury as he stared sightlessly out into the choppy waves of the tempestuous sea. His thoughts, always so concise and sure, were now scattered and in disarray as he waited for the sorceress he sought to emerge from her chilly dwelling that lay in the far depths of the ocean below. Sesshoumaru knew she would not ignore his challenge; he had, after all, gone out of his way to issue it in the most mocking of ways.

Many would think him foolish for purposefully inciting the wrath of a youkai so ancient she was revered more as a god among her kind than for what she really was: an old, decrepit woman who had nothing better to do with her time than meddle in affaires she ought not be meddling in.

A sudden explosion of water erupted at the edge of the cliff in front of him, flaring up into the sky before crackling down from whence it came just as quickly, leaving behind a patch of wet earth and a woman encased in a white kimono, her face shrouded by long black bangs.

"You either have the gall of a youkai or the ignorance of a human," the woman said, anger grave in her voice as she looked up, sweeping her hair away from her face. "Either way you have forsaken yourself."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed to slits; he knew with certain clarity that this was indeed the witch that had cursed the mirror. But _why_was the question.

Something else, however, also seemed to elude him. There was something eerily familiar about this old crone. While she looked no older, physically, than his own mother, her mere presence reflected an untold power, both more terrible and grand than that of his father's and his combined. Yet... something... an inkling of a memory teased the back of his mind irritatingly but did nothing but linger there just beyond his grasp.

"You dare," the woman started again, "to desecrate the temple of a god? You will pay with your measly life, wretch."

"Hn," he snorted through his nose derisively. "You are no god, merely a petty old youkai well past her time," Sesshoumaru said boldly, standing his ground as he watched her instantly bristle at his words.

Her youki roared to life around her, nearly suffocating the daiyoukai and sending him to his knees. Powerful though he was, even he had enough sense about him to know that were he to engage an elder youkai of old into combat, such as this one, he'd not stand a chance. Ancients like she lived as long as they did after all because they usually grew tired of worldly ways and the changing times, and merely retreated to a single resting place to sever such ties until their time came upon them.

However, when an ancient was disturbed, as this one undoubtedly had been, they arose from their solitude, and _nothing_ earth or flesh bound would stand a chance should they feel affronted.

"A youkai," she snorted, her youki trembling down to an annoyed growl, easing the weight of her power from the air. Sesshoumaru, though loathe to admit it, struggled weakly to stand again. "And a _daiyoukai_ no less. My, my," she seemed to taste the air around her, her mouth curving upwards. "Why has one such as you awoken me? Surely someone of your _meager_ _stature_ knows to respect your elders."

Sesshoumaru's annoyance was palpable, though he kept his mouth in check from far more disrespectful oaths. "You are either without mind or merely stringing me along for your own amusement," he spoke without reprieve. "You know exactly why I'm here."

"Perhaps I do and don't realize. You see, I am very old, I do things and then I don't remember the next moment what it is I've done. However, you seem to know who I am, so perhaps you can enlighten me, little youkai, and tell me what it is you've come to me for, and in doing so significantly shortened the span of your miserable life."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed further as his mouth remained in a firm line.

The old woman chuckled. "So proud. Or is it the weight of my youki in the air suppressing your inane babble? Your entire body is drawn tight, as if you're using every ounce of strength you possess to keep yourself upright." Sesshoumaru snarled then, opening his mouth to refute her statement. "Do not think to lie to me, child. Your words, your thoughts and your pride mean absolutely nothing to me.

"However, I do know why you sought me out. And I will tell you the answers in which you seek, but only at a price equal to that which you owe, not once but twice. Only then will you get the desired resolutions. Once order has been restored you will not waste my time by seeking revenge. Should you do this I will restore this price which will not have the chance to be revoked again. Do you concede, little youkai?"

Sesshoumaru glared at the witch. "I tire of you speaking in riddles, woman. I have come for answers, ones which rightfully belong to me."

"Words can be damning things, not to be carelessly used," she said, her face tilting slightly to the side. "Nor are they to be ignored," she added cryptically.

Sesshoumaru remained silent.

"I take your silence as your consent to this contract. And so it was said, and so it will be," the witch said, her voice dropping as her youki surged forward, hitting Sesshoumaru square in the chest, winding him slightly but nothing else. His eyes shot to her, anger registering in them as he wondered what had just happened. He didn't have time to come to any conclusions before she began speaking again.

"I have been known by many names throughout my many millennia of life. But I was always quite fond of Perial. Though I suppose you aren't interested in my life, so I'll cut to the chase.

"You, little youkai, have apparently forgotten me. Let me remind you of your glaring error in doing so." In the blink of an eye the woman was right in front of his face, her nose touching his as her hair was pulled away and her eyes at level with his. "Look good and hard, son of the West, the skin surrounding my eyes should bring back some hint of intelligence to you. Do you not recognize your own handy work? The way the skin erodes at the socket, wider and more jagged than it would were my eyes just taken out."

The snarl in the back of Sesshoumaru's throat caught and his lungs hissed in retaliation as the wind was blown out of him of his own accord. He recognized the damage done. Nothing but his poison could erode in such a way. But as powerful as he was, there was no way he'd ever be able to land such a hit on an ancient like her, let alone gouge her eyes out.

"They weren't gouged out either, no," she said as if reading his mind. "You pierced them with your claws and you used your poison. You burned into my skull and melted away my sight. And all because _I was in your way_."

In his way?

"I may be an ancient, and I may be able to kill a being by merely suffocating them with my youki alone, but I am not an ancient that ever excelled in physical combat, nor did I expect I'd have to defend myself from a mere _infant_. Had I known the cruel soul that lie within you, and the events that were to transpire that day, I would have turned my magic onto you. I would have crushed you." She bared her teeth as her anger mounted into disgust. "Suffocating you with pure youki doesn't befit an end for one such as you.

"You had to be punished appropriately; I'll be assuaged no other way."

A memory he'd not deemed important enough in any respect resurfaced from a day long ago when he was indeed a child, roaming the world after his mother's death and the rumors of his father's new human mistress.

He remembered killing and maiming many things during the next few decades, the old crone one of them, but far less important at the time for him to remember things with any certain clarity. Even the memory of the event was hazy to his mind now.

"I waited centuries for you to grow, to become strong enough to kill; however, even now you're not close to being my equal. However, the chance to afflict you in some way overshadowed my priority of you becoming a worthy adversary one day.

"My eyes are not the only part of me that can sense things, and you, being as overconfident as you've always been, let your youki leak everywhere you went. Though it doesn't surprise me, you are an inuyoukai after all; your kind always did have something of an obsession with marking your territory in one way or another. However, like my eyes, I sought to take away something of equal value from you, it couldn't just be some body part of yours, no.

"And then you found that young monk in the woods... Before even you were aware I knew what you felt. I could sense it. It's a pity though that his life was forfeit the moment you laid eyes on him."

Sesshoumaru's eyes were wide, struggling to grasp all the pieces. She was the witch that cursed the mirror, and by way of that, the houshi as well. And all for some feeble thing like revenge, for sight which was apparently a useless sense to her?

And suddenly the chaotic feelings raging inside of him went unearthly still before they gave way to a fury so tangible and so precise that his youki flared, his eyes turning red.

The woman smiled in his snarling face, calm as a spring breeze. "It's time now that you pay the full price for your offenses, little youkai." She bowed her head and lightly tapped his forehead with her finger.

A burst of blue exploded in Sesshoumaru's vision and he was thrown backwards, his body skidding across the earth and snow.

As his body finally came to a halt, he swore he saw slivers of black hair flutter around him, but the more he tried to see what it was his vision began fading. And all he could feel was that something in him weakened considerably.

And then there was nothing but darkness and brutal, biting cold.

* * *

_To be continued..._


End file.
